by David Jackson, USA TODAY

by David Jackson, USA TODAY

WASHINGTON - Faced with a pair of violent crises, President Obama said Monday he is seeing progress in Iraq and announced he is dispatching Attorney General Eric Holder to monitor the unrest over a police shooting in a St. Louis suburb.

Hours after being briefed by Holder on events in Ferguson, Mo., Obama again called for calm and said people there should push back on "a small minority" that is undermining peaceful protest by fomenting violence.

"Let's seek to heal rather than to wound each other," Obama said at the White House.

While there are legitimate concerns raised by the shooting of an unarmed 18-year-old black man, Obama said, the solution does not involve looting and attacking police with Molotov cocktails. "They are damaging the cause," he said. "They are not advancing it."

Obama called on people to address "the gulf of mistrust" that exists between minorities and law enforcement, with respect for all sides. He said police should re-examine the use of heavy military equipment in dealing with protests and hopes that use of the National Guard will be "limited."

After a day of briefings at the White House, Obama also said the United States is seeing progress in the Iraq military operation, citing the recapture of the nation's largest dam near Mosul.

Militant control of that dam, which controls so much of Iraq's water supply, could have been "catastrophic," Obama said, leading to "floods that would've threatened the lives of thousands of civilians and endanger our embassy compound in Baghdad."

Obama also praised the help of allies in Iraq, saying the Iraqis continue to make progress on forming a united and inclusive government as it battles the militant group known as the Islamic State, or ISIL.

"Let's remember ISIL poses a threat to all Iraqis and to the entire region," Obama said.

Obama said he could not put a timeline on efforts to subdue ISIL, but said he is on guard against "mission creep" in Iraq. He repeated there would be no return of American combat troops on the ground in Iraq.

The president spoke after a pair of briefings on the two topics he discussed.

Earlier in the afternoon, Holder and aides briefed Obama on the investigation into the police shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown in Ferguson.

During the morning, Obama heard from members of his National Security Council about the ongoing military operation in Iraq. The national security meeting took place in the Roosevelt Room rather than the Situation Room, which is undergoing maintenance and an upgrade.

Obama - who returned to the White House after midnight from his vacation on Martha's Vineyard, Mass. - is scheduled to fly back to the island on Tuesday for a vacation that ends Sunday.

The Aug. 9 shooting in Ferguson has triggered protests, including from African Americans who have long criticized police's treatment of them.

Holder will be in Ferguson on Wednesday to talk with FBI agents and Justice Department officials involved in the investigation of Brown's death, Obama said. Holder, he added, will also meet "with other leaders in the community whose support is so critical to bringing about peace and calm in Ferguson."

Obama, the nation's first African-American president, said racial disparities in the criminal justice system need to be addressed. He said individuals are responsible for their own actions.

"Here are young black men that commit crime," Obama said. "And we can argue about why that happens: because of the poverty they were born into, or the lack of opportunity. or the school systems that failed them or what have you. But if they commit a crime, then they need to be prosecuted, because every community has an interest in public safety."

Early Monday morning, Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon called out the National Guard to restore order in the community near St. Louis where some of the protests have turned violent. Later, the governor ended a short-lived curfew.

Obama said he spoke with Nixon and asked that the National Guard be used in "a limited and appropriate way." The president said, "I'll be watching over the next several days to assess whether, in fact, it's helping rather than hindering progress in Ferguson."

The National Security Council meeting consisted of an overall update on Iraq, according to the White House schedule.

Earlier this month, Obama authorized airstrikes of militants who threaten U.S. personnel and Kurdish citizens in northern Iraq.

On Monday, Iraqi forces said they have retaken control of the nation's largest dam from the Islamic State militants.

The operation has included humanitarian aid to religious minorities trapped atop a mountain in Iraq. The administration considered a rescue mission, but determined that most of those trapped had escaped.

The Obama administration is also pushing Iraq to form a national government that includes all three major religious sects - Sunnis, Shias and Kurds - the key to success against ISIL, the president said.

"With that new government in place, Iraqis will be able to unite the country against the threat from ISIL," Obama said. "And they will be able to look forward to increased support, not just from the United States, but from other countries in the region and around the world."